Deity
by xgravity
Summary: Hyūga was surprised when the practically invisible Shinki appeared and asked him for a name. His gut told him he shouldn't interfere. He did anyway. Go figure. Hopefully he can handle what's coming. Noragami AU.
1. Beginnings

**Hello all!**

 **So, this is, for all intents and purposes, my first fanfiction! I had one that I was working on before, but have decided to start anew.**

 **Before you read, you should probably have watched at least through episode 5 of the second season of Noragami or have read through chapter 20 of the manga. If you haven't seen/read it at all, I highly recommend it!**

 **Please be aware that this work is not beta-read and will likely contain grammar mistakes. Constructive criticism over anything is most definitely welcome. Also, as I have a lot to deal with in life, including school and other activities, updates will be sporadic and infrequent, but I will try my best to find time to update.**

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Kuroko no Basuke nor Noragami belong to me. They belong to respective owners.**

 **Rated T for language.**

 **Please enjoy!**

* * *

"Hyūga-sama, I know you're the serious about your duties as the god of athletics, but do we really have to come to a high school orientation every year..?"

"Don't be stupid! Of course we do!" Hyūga shouted, his infamous clutch mode activated. The Shinki who had spoken, Furihata, backed away, sweating in a nervous exasperation. "It's all about seeing who's signing up for sports clubs!" Hyūga continued, nodding vigorously in agreement with himself. "As their patron, it's my duty to keep an eye on athletes everywhere, you know?"

"Furi, you've barely been with Hyūga for ten years now… Try coming to these things every year for decades in a row…" Koganei, another Shinki, muttered under his breath.

"What was that, you brat?!" Hyūga turned, raising a threatening fist.

"N-nothing, Hyūga-sama," Koganei insisted, making sure to add the usually-absent honorific. Behind him, Mitobe nodded assertively in confirmation, while the other six Shinki couldn't help but giggle quietly.

"Come on, you guys, it's not that bad," grinned the newest Shinki of them all, a jovial teenager by the name of Kiyoshi. "I think it's fun to scout out the sports players," he went on before laughing and patting Furihata rather roughly on the back.

"You're worse than Furi is, Kiyoshi! You just joined us last year! You've never even been to one of these things before, have you?!" Koganei shouted, pointing an accusing finger at the other Shinki, who never lost his smile. This time, the other Shinki couldn't help but laugh out loud, and before long Koganei and Kiyoshi were laughing right alongside them.

Hyūga let out a content sigh. "Now that we're done with that, can we _please_ go and check out these clubs..?"

"Yeah, yeah. Let's go, Hyūga," said Izuki. The black-haired Shinki was the god's oldest partner, as well as being his Guidepost. He turned and walked toward one of the many club booths the school had set up, waving his hand in an indication for the others to follow.

"Izuki-senpai is so good at handling Hyūga-sama…" Fukuda, another recently picked up Shinki, sweatdropped.

"Well, he's got tons of experience. He's been around even longer than I have," Koganei said. Behind him, Mitobe simply nodded.

"I suppose… Hey, Koganei-senpai, how long have you been serving Hyūga-sama, anyway?"

"Eh? How long? I'm not really sure… I lost count after a few centuries, and that was a couple decades back, too…" The Shinki put a thoughtful hand to his chin, trying to come up with an answer while his friends gaped at him. After a moment, he shrugged, giving up on finding an accurate response. "Who knows? Mitobe came just a couple years after me, though." The black-haired Shinki smiled.

"Mitobe-senpai's been around for that long, too?" Kawahara said in amazement. He, along with Fukuda and Furihata, had only been in Hyūga's service for just over a decade; they had all joined him within a year of each other, as the god had been looking to recruit more Shinki to expand his power. Of course, this had backfired when the three of them ended up taking the forms of non-combative items; Kawahara became a mirror, Fukuda turned into a writing brush, and Furihata ended up transforming into a chihuahua.

"Yup!" Koganei said, popping the "p" at the end. "In all this time, I haven't heard him speak, either!"

 _Haven't heard him… Ever?!_

 _It's been centuries… Is he even able to speak?_

 _That's weirdly cool…!_

Mitobe's smile grew, and his eyes shut into an expression that imitated laughter, but of course he made no sound.

"Ohhh, look at this! The basketball club!" Izuki exclaimed, stopping and looking back at his comrades. Hyūga was immediately at attention; although he was the god of athletics, it was common knowledge, at least among his Shinki, that basketball was by far his favorite sport.

"Huh… It looks like there aren't too many applicants… This is a new school, isn't it, Hyūga?" asked Kiyoshi, taking note of the unusually pristine-looking building.

"Yeah, it just opened last year," the god responded. "I wonder how many members there are…" Strangely, the girl at the basketball booth caught his attention before he had the chance to look for any players. Her brown hair was cut short, her bangs held up by hair clips to keep them out of her face. She wasn't beautiful, like some of the other girls Hyūga had seen in his centuries of existence, but he could tell something about her was different from everyone around her. She looked strangely familiar; even though her face was twisted up with concern and worry at the moment, he felt that she was generally a happy, hardworking girl. It took him a moment, but all at once, he recognized her. _She's the one that…_

"Hyūga, are you alright? You're staring at that girl," Izuki said, waving his hand in front of the god's face to bring him back to attention.

"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine, sorry. I think she might be able to sense us, if not see us," he said. "She's got a different aura about her." Izuki raised an eyebrow, but didn't respond. "Anyway, we-"

He stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening before he took a surprised step backwards. The Shinki, sensing their master's discomfort, immediately took up a defensive position, looking around for any sign of danger.

After only a second, Hyūga visibly relaxed before comforting his Shinki. "It's fine, guys, there's nothing here. Nothing dangerous, anyway. I was just surprised when I saw _that_ ," he said, pointing ahead of him for emphasis.

There, next to the school's basketball stand, was a little white ball; a spirit. A newly dead, unnamed Shinki. (1)

"No wonder that girl is so freaked out," Hyūga mumbled, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his black jacket.

"Oh." Kiyoshi was at a loss for words; being a relatively new spirit himself, he had never seen a nameless Shinki before, much less one that had just recently died. He turned to his master. "What are you going to do?"

Hyūga was silent for a moment before answering. "I'll claim him," he said slowly. "This one… I dunno how to explain it, but I've got a feeling about him. He's… different."

None of the Shinki asked what he meant.

Hyūga cleared his throat before holding out his arm, pointing at the spirit. A bright light appeared in his hand before he began to speak:

"You, with nowhere to go and nowhere to return… I grant you a place to belong. My name is Hyūga. Bearing a posthumous name, you shall remain here. Bearing this name, I make thee my servant. With this name and its alternate, I use my life to make thee a Shinki. Thou art Ka. Come, Kaki!" (2)

A brilliant flash radiated from the tiny phantom before it transformed. The symbol 火 appeared for a moment before it shot up, turning every which way before finally coming down and making a beeline for its new master.

Instead of arriving in Hyūga's hand like a weapon would, the light instead landed right next to him before expanding into the form of a large cat; a tiger, to be exact.

The other Shinki stepped back, a few blinded by the light coming from Hyūga's newly attained Shinki, others slightly afraid of the indescribable aura coming from this new companion of theirs. There really were no words that could be used to recreate the sensation of what they were feeling then; they just knew that this Shinki would be extraordinary beyond what any of them could possibly imagine.

* * *

 **(1) This is under the assumption that this is how they appear when newly dead, as Yukine did.**

 **(2) I ACTUALLY HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO DO THIS. I am aware that there is another part of the naming; the vessel name. It's supposedly the Chinese reading of the Shinki's vessel name or something of the sort (I really don't get how that works), but I don't exactly speak Chinese (or Japanese, for that matter), and Google Translate can only get you so far. In fact, for all of the alternate names throughout this story, there's a chance that they will be inaccurate; I'm not completely sure about any of them. For the sake of not confusing anyone (or making a fool out of myself, thanks) I won't be including the Chinese reading because I don't know anything about it. If anyone knows Chinese/Japanese and would be willing to help me out, that'd be great, but otherwise it's gonna stay as it is. Sorry if it's inaccurate, but it's the best I can do.**

 **I'm going to be using honorifics and such in this story because I honestly can't imagine some of the characters (ahem, Kuroko) addressing other people without them. I'll be using macrons, too, because otherwise I'm too inconsistent with the spelling and it ticks me off (thanks, OCD) and that was the only solution I could find.**

 **Thanks for reading! Please drop a review on your way out and let me know what you think!**


	2. Tiger

**I'm back!**

 **This is actually coming a little later than I expected, as it was already written out and everything... I only had to publish it but I just now got to it. Oops.**

 **Thanks to those who followed, favorited, and reviewed!**

 **Kuroshiroyuu:** Sorry if it's a disappointment but the tiger is actually Kagami, not Kuroko! To answer your question, yes, the rest of the Miracles will definitely be involved; they're going to be playing a pretty major role, actually.

 **Awesome Sauce:** Thank you! Here's an update!

 **Sweet Lover:** Thanks! I'm not counting it as a crossover because while it's in the Noragami universe, it doesn't involve any of the characters from that story. As for the Chinese reading, some of them are easier to deal with than others; I don't want to be inconsistent, so I'm just going to stick to one system, even though it's all wrong. It's easier to deal with for recognition, anyways.

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Kuroko no Basuke nor Noragami belong to me. They belong to respective owners.**

 **On with the show!**

* * *

Izuki, being the most accustomed to situations like this, was the first to recover. Slowly, he walked towards his master and the newly formed Shinki before releasing a breath he did not realize he had been holding in.

"Damn," Fukuda whispered appreciatively. A Shinki turning into an animal wasn't exactly common; in fact, most of them, with the exceptions of Izuki and Koganei, had never seen another one besides Furihata, and even he was just a chihuahua. The tiger before them was huge, easily the size of a small horse. Its blood red eyes were piercing and mesmerizing, scaring those who looked straight into them but holding them captive all the same. Behind Fukuda, the other Shinki could only stare in awe at the beast before them.

Izuki was only about three feet away from the tiger when he visibly tensed, his hackles raising as he shifted his weight should he need to pounce. The black-haired Shinki froze before taking a conscious step back, his hands slowly coming up to show that he meant no harm.

Meanwhile, Hyūga only observed the exchange, his face betraying no emotion. After a few moments, Izuki relaxed, letting his hands down. The tiger followed suit not long after.

Hyūga cleared his throat before calling his new Shinki's name.

"Ka."

The 火 symbol flashed again before the tiger itself emitted a brilliant light, which then transformed into the shape of a human.

Even in his human form, the newcomer was tall, taller than all of them, with the exception of Kiyoshi. He was young, too, probably in his mid teens. (1) Like all newly formed Shinki, he was wearing a simple white robe, which almost completely covered his large stature. (2) His eyes remained red, while his hair was two-toned; mostly red, but black on the edges, especially at the tips of his bangs. For someone so big, his face was surprisingly gentle as he held his hands out in front of him and looked down at them, as if just now realizing had them.

Hyūga's Shinki said nothing as the god stepped forward to confront his new servant.

"Kagami," he said, answering his the question none of his Shinki had voiced, "I am Hyūga. Your master."

The redhead, upon realizing he was being spoken too, raised his head slightly to look down at the god, letting his hands fall back to his sides. He stood there for several moments, simply staring, blinking, perhaps trying to comprehend what was happening.

"I've summoned you from the Far Shore to serve as my Shinki," Hyūga continued. "I permit you to serve and remain by my side longer than kin." After a brief pause, realization seemed to dawn on Kagami's face, as his expression became less than impressed.

"Eh? Servant? What the hell? You want me to clean and cook and do your laundry or something, old man? No way!" He crossed his arms and turned his head, his eyes falling on the group of Hyūga's Shinki, who were either gaping in disbelief or trying to hold back laughter. Meanwhile, Hyūga himself looked like he'd just lost his soul.

Kagami blinked again before screaming, "Ehhhhhhh?! Who're you guys?!" He pointed at them rather rudely, counting their numbers. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight… I'm nine! You want nine servants, old man?! How much laundry do you even go through?!"

At this point, Koganei could no longer contain his laughter; he burst into a fit of unsuppressed giggles, falling to his knees because he couldn't keep his balance. The rest of the Shinki began to giggle a bit, too, with the exception of Mitobe and Izuki, who just smiled in amusement.

"What's so funny?!" the redhead demanded, turning back to Hyūga, who still looked like he was half dead. "Old man, who're these guys! Don't tell me you're forcing them to vacuum and stuff!"

Hyūga finally regained his composure, standing up straight before a tick mark appeared on his forehead. "You bastard… WATCH HOW YOU SPEAK TO YOUR SENIORS, YOU BRAT!" The god knocked his newest Shinki on the head, effectively making him fall to his knees, cradling his new wound as a surprisingly large bump grew from where he had been hit. Hyūga stepped back to admire his work, nodding in content with the fact that the rebellious youngling had been dealt with accordingly.

The laughter coming from the other Shinki had died down to a mild chuckle. "Oh, he's going to fit right in," Izuki said. Mitobe only smiled and nodded behind him.

* * *

"Oh, I see," Kagami said, nodding in realization. "So, you're not going to make me do laundry," he laughed. "That's a relief. I'm terrible at laundry."

The other Shinki couldn't help but snicker; from what they'd seen of Kagami in the last five minutes, laundry certainly didn't seem like the type of thing he'd be good at.

Kagami's laughter suddenly ceased, though, and a painfully thoughtful look appeared on his face. He paused for a moment, thinking. "I think I am, anyway. I don't really remember. Hey, why don't I remember anything?"

Despite the warm season, the air temperature seemed to suddenly drop several degrees, and everyone quickly became quiet. The news of death was always hard to break to a new spirit.

"Kagami…" Izuki hesitated. Being Hyūga's Guidepost, the duty of dropping the bad news usually fell to him. It was a terrible burden, really, but it was his responsibility to make sure his fellow servants were aware of their own reality and expectations. The other Shinki all looked away, most of them grimacing, while Izuki spoke.

"Listen, Kagami," the black-haired Guidepost began. "You're a Shinki, okay? All of us are Shinki, except Hyūga, of course. He's our master, a god." He paused to let this sink in.

Kagami looked thoughtful for all of two seconds before he let out a little screech. "EH?!" he exclaimed, looking dumbfounded. "The old man's a god?!"

Mitobe shook his head in mild disbelief. Behind him, Hyūga looked like he was about to commit a homicide.

Izuki looked like he was trying to hold back laughter as he continued. "The reason he's our master is because he took us all in. He put a roof over our heads and food in our mouths and clothes on our bodies when we had nowhere else to go… We had nowhere to return to because nobody else could see us, and because we couldn't even remember what our lives had been like. That's what happens when you die, Kagami. You're dead."

Silence.

The tall redhead looked Izuki in the eye, and held contact for several moments before releasing a great sigh.

"I see."

 _THAT'S YOUR REACTION?!_ Furihata, Fukuda, and Kawahara screamed in their thoughts. Each of them had been upset when they'd realized the truth, but overall they'd taken the news rather well. Now, though, Kagami was making it seem like their reactions were totally blown out of proportion.

Izuki's eye twitched, not sure how to deal with a response like the one he'd received. "Do you not care?"

Kagami shrugged. "I mean, yeah, I care. I probably wouldn't have wanted to die if I had a choice. But, like you said, I'm dead, right? Just because I bitch about it a little doesn't mean it's going to change anything," he mumbled.

Hyūga and his Shinki were about to be impressed by Kagami's logic before his stomach suddenly released a growl louder than a rushing river.

"Oh," Kagami said, looking down at his suddenly rumbling stomach. He laughed for a moment before eyeing Hyūga again. "I'm really hungry, though. You got anything to eat?"

Hyūga sighed before turning to the rest of his Shinki. "Well, I guess we can evaluate the athletes another day. What do you guys say we head over to Maji Burger before heading back to the shrine?"

A chorus of yeses and whoops followed Hyūga's suggestion. Kagami grinned widely, looking forward to his first meal in recent memory. Koganei quickly struck up a conversation with him as the group walked towards their destination. The readhead found himself listening to stories of Hyūga's seven Shinki from decades or even centuries ago, in the cases of Izuki, Mitobe, and Koganei. He laughed a lot, especially for someone who had just died.

It was funny, really; he'd just met these people, but for some reason, he really felt like he belonged with them. They were a family, almost; if he hadn't known better, he would've mistaken them for one, anyway. Kagami found himself smiling. Maybe death wouldn't be so bad if he could spend it with these guys.

* * *

"...And then Izuki goes, 'Oh, I was going to get a brain transplant, but then I changed my mind,' (3) and Hyūga almost murdered him! I'm not even kidding! I bet that's how that guy died in the first place, you know? He probably made one too many puns and someone just got tired of them, and thought, 'You know, I have a sword, I have a problem, and my problem has a head. How convenient!'" Everyone laughed, even Izuki and Hyūga.

"Yes," agreed Izuki. "My head was the head of all his problems." He gave a thumbs up before pulling out a notebook and scribbling something in it.

"IZUKI!"

The black-haired Guidepost expertly dodged the god's attempt to grab his notebook, continuing to write as if nothing had happened before he quickly closed it and put it back in his pocket. He then looked up at his master, an innocent expression on his face. "Yes?"

Hyūga made a sound not unsimilar to that of a dying goose before giving up and turning back to face the others. "Alright guys. It's about time we head back to the shrine, don't you think?" Several heads nodded in approval. "Alright, then, let's go." Hyūga began to turn, but stopped abruptly before facing his newest Shinki. "By the way, Kagami," he said sweetly, with a smile that was completely out of character, "you'd better work hard to help pay off the twenty-something burgers you ended up buying."

"Ehhh?! Hey, it's not my fault I was hungry! What if I starved to death and that's why? Huh? Wait a minute, I'm talking to you!" He desperately tried to get Hyūga's attention, but the god simply ignored him, continuing to walk back towards his shrine.

It only took them about ten minutes of walking to arrive at their destination; while it wasn't huge, Hyūga's shrine was sturdily built and well maintained. It was obvious that it was cared for frequently and lovingly, either by Hyūga himself or some dedicated followers.

"Wow, this is a nice place you've got, old man," Kagami said, looking around the shrine. The area was spacious, but not too big, and beautifully adorned with fine decorations.

"The names Hyūga, you brat! And that's Hyūga-sama to you!"

"Yeah yeah, Hyūga," Kagami waved him off, a playful grin dancing on his lips. The god growled a bit but otherwise let him off the hook. Mitobe smiled in the direction of the redhead before a look of realization came upon his face. Silently, he went over to Koganei, who was conversing with Izuki, before making a series of slight facial expressions.

Somehow, Koganei seemed to understand Mitobe's strange signals. "Oh, you're right, Mitobe! Hey, Izuki, Kagami needs some clothes and stuff, yeah? Do you know if Hyūga has any spare change?"

The god, having apparently overheard their conversation, starting digging through his pockets. Fortunately, he found a few wads of bills, but nothing more. He handed the money over to Izuki before scratching the back of his head in a slight embarrassment. "That's all I've got on me… Usually, I have more, but I spent a lot at Maji Burger today… You can look through my wallet if you want, but don't take too much."

"No, this should be enough for an outfit or two," Izuki replied before turning to Kagami. "Are you okay with wearing some of Mitobe's pajamas for tonight? I'll take you shopping tomorrow, we can grab you some clothes and maybe some other stuff if we have any money leftover."

"Yeah, that's fine," Kagami responded. "He's the tall guy, right?" Behind him, Mitobe nodded. "Those should fit me. That'll be alright for a while," he determined. Izuki nodded before stashing the bills into his own jacket for safekeeping.

Several hours passed, mostly with the other Shinki describing their daily lives to their newest member. Hyūga simply sat back and watched the whole thing, adding in a few words every once in awhile as the stories were told. At about ten o'clock at night, Hyūga decreed that they should all go to sleep, since they had to wake up early for a job tomorrow.

"I'll be taking Kagami with us to see how useful he is," Hyūga said. "Other than that, the formation is the same. Remember, this is Kagami's first job, so you guys have to put on a good show."

"When do we not?" Koganei laughed, earning a smile from Mitobe and a chuckle from Kiyoshi.

"True enough," replied Hyūga. "Can't hurt to remind you though, can it?"

"I suppose not," Koganei said. "Well, if we're waking up early tomorrow, I'm gonna head to bed. G'night~" he called.

"Bed…" Izuki had an intense look of concentration on his face. "You're going to head to bed to get a bedhead." (3)

A loud crash resounded throughout the shrine as Izuki fell, or rather, was punched, into the floor.

Hyūga sighed before retiring to his room, which was separate from that of all the Shinki. Because his shrine was too small to house individual rooms for all of them, they all shared one, which had many futons laid out for them to sleep on.

After all eight of his Shinki has retired to their room, Hyūga quietly moved across the shrine before arriving at the door. He stepped outside into the cold night air before sitting on the steps leading up to his temple. He did this often enough, but he didn't think any of his Shinki had ever noticed; it was a habit of his, now, to sit outside and simply think about whatever was on his mind, and he certainly had a lot to think about after what had happened today.

Hyūga didn't know how much time he spent sitting there, deep in thought, before he finally heard a soft, quiet voice speaking to him.

"...Hello?"

Turning towards the source of the sound, Hyūga's eyes widened upon meeting the sight before him; a pale boy with equally pale blue hair and eyes, crouching down right next to him, looking slightly annoyed, as if he had been ignored for quite some time.

Hyūga, in all his godliness and holiness, jumped twenty feet in the air and screamed like a little girl.

 _HOW LONG HAS HE BEEN THERE?!_

The boy only blinked before standing up straight and apologizing. "I'm sorry to have scared you. However, I have a request…"

He paused before bowing low to Hyūga, who was still sitting in the dirt with a terrified expression on his face.

"Do you think you could give me a name?"

* * *

 **(1) For the sake of this story, we're going to assume that Kagami was 15, Furihata, Kawahara, and Fukuda were 16, and Izuki, Koganei, Mitobe, and Kiyoshi were 17 when they died. Naturally, they don't remember how old they are/were, but of course the oldest are generally the most mature while the youngest are usually the least (in Kagami's case, anyway).**

 **(2) Again, this is just an assumption. That's what Yukine was wearing when he appeared, anyways.**

 **(3) I googled it and I regret nothing.**

 **In case it wasn't clear, that was Kuroko towards the end! He'll be making his grand entrance next chapter. Things are finally rolling!**

 **Thanks for reading! Please leave a review on your way out!**


	3. Name

**Woah, look, an update!**

 **It's pretty short, though... Oops. Well, it's only been a day since the last update, anyways. (That's probably not going to happen again any time soon, by the way. Please don't get used to it.)**

 **Thanks to those who followed, favorited, and/or reviewed!**

 **nicoleAnE:** Here's an update!

 **SilverWhiteDragon:** You're right; I decided against using specific clan name simply for recognition purposes. It was stated (somewhere) that not every got uses clan names like those in Noragami do, so I'm going with that. The names are pretty fascinating, aren't they? I really wish I understood how the whole system worked, but unfortunately I don't speak the language. Thanks for your help, by the way! And I highly recommend Noragami if you're looking for something to read/watch; definitely one of my favorites.

 **EchizenRyoma:** Yes, they do have powers. Kuroko's will be revealed soon enough. The other members of the Generation of Miracles will be making appearances later in the story. It actually won't be too long before Kise shows up.

 **Zanas-kun:** Here's some more Kuroko for you!

 **mimi-chan and aliling-chan:** Although it's interested, Yato and Akashi having the same voice actor doesn't really affect the story at all, but to answer your question, yes, Akashi will be portrayed as a god. A war god, to be exact. As for the plot, it'll be more similar to Kuroko no Basuke than Noragami, although it does have its differences. Riko will be playing a role similar to that of Hiyori in Noragami but it won't be nearly as important to the story.

 **Shadowlove'scookies:** Here's an update!

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Kuroko no Basuke nor Noragami belong to me. They belong to respective owners.**

 **On with the show!**

* * *

The pale, blue-haired boy stared down at him, his cerulean eyes perfectly blank; empty, even. Hyūga stared up at him for a few moments before he understood what was being asked of him.

"Give you… a name?" he repeated dumbly.

"Yes," he responded. "Please."

It was silent for a heartbeat longer before a large crash came from inside the shrine. Hyūga almost jumped up again, but managed to stay composed as he turned towards the source of the sound. The boy simply looked at the shrine, no sign of surprise in his eyes.

Izuki was, unsurprisingly, the first one out, closely followed by Koganei, Mitobe, and the others. Hyūga could even see Kagami in the back, towering over most of the others with a concerned expression on his face.

"Hyūga!" Izuki called, unusually desperate. "What happened?! We heard you scream, and-"

"Calm down, Izuki," Hyūga muttered, embarrassed. "This guy just scared me, is all." He gestured towards the blue-haired boy, who was staring at the group of Shinki impassively.

Izuki looked right at where Hyūga was pointed, but only seemed to grow confused. "...Who?"

The god blinked. "What, are you blind?" Hyūga asked. ("That's rich, coming from you, four-eyes," Koganei muttered before being slapped on the head by Mitobe.) "He's right there…" he turned toward where the boy had been not a moment ago, only to find that he was, in fact, gone.

"What the hell?!" he screeched, unable to keep calm. "He completely disappeared!" Hyūga looked around wildly, trying to locate him, but to no avail.

"I am here."

He stood there, right in front of Hyūga's Shinki, his face betraying no emotion whatsoever. Much like their master had done not two minutes ago, the Shinki all jumped several feet in the air and screamed rather loudly.

"What the…?"

"Where the hell did he come from?!"

"I didn't even see him…"

"When did he get there?"

"Ah, my apologies," he said with a short bow. "I have been here the whole time."

The looks on their faces were absolutely comical, but the boy still remained expressionless.

As usual, Izuki was the first to recover. "A-ah, well, we must apologize as well," he said before returning with a bow of his own. The other Shinki expertly followed his example, bowing in sync not a moment after. Even Kagami was somehow bright enough to catch on to his seniors' actions.

Izuki smiled at the blue-haired boy, who was easily shorter than any of them; he looked young, too, perhaps around Kagami's age, though he gave off the impression that he was wiser than their red-haired friend. "What can we do for you, Mister…?"

The boy stared up at the Guidepost. "Ah, at the moment, I have no name," he explained. "I was just asking your master if he would so kindly give one to me."

Nine pairs of eyes immediately looked over to the god of athletics, each asking the same silent question.

Hyūga only sighed. "Sure, I'll give you a name," he relented.

Turning to face the blue-haired boy he was about to take under his wing, Hyūga got a good look at him for the first time. He really was rather short and young-looking, as the god had observed earlier. His pale blue hair matched his eyes, which even now remained blank and devoid of emotion. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking. Hyūga couldn't help but wonder where he'd come from; he was obviously someone who had been in the service of a god before, but which god, Hyūga had no idea. He shrugged it off, telling himself that it had probably just been some minor, no-name god.

The god breathed in deeply before speaking;

"You, with nowhere to go and nowhere to return… I grant you a place to belong. My name is Hyūga. Bearing a posthumous name, you shall remain here. Bearing this name, I make thee my servant. With this name and its alternate, I use my life to make thee a Shinki. Thou art Kuro. Come, Kuroki!" (1)

The 黒 symbol appeared after a flash of white. The light began to move quickly towards its new master's hand. Not a moment later, an ordinary pair of black glasses appeared in Hyūga's hands.

Behind Hyūga's Shinki, Kagami watched the naming with wide eyes. Having just been named that morning, of course he'd never seen the claiming of another Shinki. He wasn't used to the fact that he was dead, let alone familiar with the logistics of the Far Shore.

The other Shinki, who were far more used to this kind of thing, began chattering excitedly.

"A pair of glasses..? I wonder if they're useful…"

"Maybe he's just another non-combative Shinki."

"He seems kind of creepy, doesn't he? He's practically invisible!"

"I wonder what his past is..?"

"Glasses?" Hyūga asked slowly.

"Yes," came the monotone response. "It appears so."

The god stood there for a minute or so, turning the glasses in his hand over and over again, observing them. After a while, he finally reverted his new Shinki back to his human form by calling his new name.

"Revert, Kuro."

With a flash, the glasses turned back into the pale figure that was their new friend. He looked exactly the same as before, with the exception of the 黒 symbol, which was now pasted in red ink on his right hand.

There was a brief pause before Koganei finally asked the question that was on everybody's mind.

"What's his name, Hyūga?"

"He's called Kuroko," the god responded. "Hey, Kuroko, what did you do for your old master?" he inquired. "Were you a combat Shinki?"

"Yes," he said again. "I was with my former master every time he fought."

"Interesting…" Hyūga muttered. "Were you in a completely different form last time, then? A weapon, maybe?"

The newly named Shinki blinked. "No, it was quite similar to the form I take now."

"What were you?"

"A contact lens."

They could only stare at him, trying to figure out whether he was kidding or not. "Oi, oi, are you serious…?" breathed out one of Hyūga's Shinki.

"Yes," Kuroko replied in monotone. "My sense of humor is horrible."

 _We can tell!_ thought everyone else. "Still, though," Hyūga mused, "I've never heard of a Shinki turning into a contact lens before."

"Well, I took on a different form before that. I used to be just an ordinary pair of glasses, but that was different from the way my form under you is now." (2)

"A different… form?"

"Yes."

"From the same master?"

"Yes."

Silence. Then…

"YOU'RE A HAFURI VESSEL?!" shouted everyone, with the exception of Kagami and Kiyoshi, who had no idea what was happening.

"Yes," came the same response.

"DON'T BE SO CALM ABOUT IT!" Hyūga yelled, almost in tears. "What the hell is a Hafuri Vessel like you doing here?! Why were you nameless? What? How? Who?" It was then that the god's brain fried, leading him to collapse on the floor, twitching and wearing an expression of indescribable insanity.

Kuroko only blinked before answering some of Hyūga's questions. "Like I said, I was looking for a name," he said. "I was nameless because my former master released me, so I needed a new one."

"O-oi, Kuroko, who was your former master, anyway?" piped up Koganei. Beside him, Mitobe's eyes widened in curiosity.

"...I'd rather not say."

"E-eh? Why not?"

"We didn't part on the best of terms."

They hadn't known the boy for long, but they could still tell his abnormal tone was meant to end the conversation. For whatever reason, Kuroko was dead set on not revealing who his former master had been.

"A-ah, well, that's okay, right?" Kiyoshi, who still really didn't know what was happening, moved toward the front of the group to stand beside Izuki. "Hello, Kuroko. Welcome to the family," he greeted with his signature goofy smile.

"Oi, that's my job, Kiyoshi," the black-haired Shinki retorted, playfully flicking the side of Kiyoshi's head. "That's really all there really is to it, though," he admitted, turning back towards the new Shinki. "Hafuri Vessel or not, you're welcome here, Kuroko. No matter your past, you're family now."

The blue-haired boy's eyes widened a fraction of an inch before returning to his usual blank mask; if they'd known him well, Hyūga's Shinki would have been able to tell just how surprised Kuroko really was. It wasn't often that he showed expression, especially surprise.

Izuki walked over towards their newest family member, extending a hand out, which Kuroko slowly took. "Come on," he offered, "we'll show you around and help you get settled in for tonight. Hyūga's got a job early tomorrow morning, so we're getting up early. You can stay here if you want; Furi, Kawahara, and Fukuda will be, as well." Izuki continued talking even as he led the smaller boy back towards the shrine. The group of Hyūga's Shinki parted, allowing them to walk through before following them back in.

All of them conveniently forgot their master, who was still lying in the dirt, a comically shocked expression still on his face.

* * *

 **(1) I know that Daikoku has his Shinki's name as Kuro, but his name as a weapon is Koki. I'm going to make Kuroko's Kuroki simply for recognition, plus that I'm not using the Chinese method for naming any of the Shinki, as I have no idea how to do it.**

 **(2) It says on the Noragami Wiki that once a Shinki becomes a Hafuri Vessel, its form will last forever, but I'm not sure if that means under the same master or no matter which master claims it. I'm going to go with the first one, because it's more convenient for this story. Sorry if you disagree.**

 **I just realized that this is mostly dialogue. Haha, oops.**

 **Incase you didn't read it in the review response above, I'd like to point out that I will _not_ be using clan names in this story. It'd make things more difficult for me and I know I'd mess it up somewhere. **

**Thanks for reading! Please leave a review on your way out!**


	4. Gifted

**Sorry for the wait! Even now, I'm in a bit of a rush, so I haven't proofread this chapter like I usually do... I apologize for any mistakes!**

 **Thanks to those who followed, favorited, and reviewed!**

 **SilverWhiteDragon:** This story won't have any pairings, except some (probably) minor Hyūga x Riko.

 **Kuroshiroryuu:** You're right about Akashi being Kuroko's former master! Nijimura will come into play later, as well.

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Kuroko no Basuke nor Noragami belong to me. They belong to respective owners.**

 **On with the show!**

* * *

The following morning came all too quickly. Even if they were dead, Shinki needed their sleep, and the disturbance to their rest the previous night did not come without consequences. When they awoke the next morning, all of them were grumbling and groaning about the lack of sleep; all but Kuroko, the nearly invisible newcomer.

Out of all the Shinki any of them had ever met, he was the only one who actually resembled a ghost. With his pale skin, light hair and eyes, and practically nonexistent presence, it was difficult to detect him at all. In the short time they'd known him, Kuroko had already scared many of Hyūga's Shinki by suddenly appearing right next to them.

Besides being, for lack of a better word, a weirdo, Kuroko often seemed very distant, as if he was thinking about something that really bothered him. That, plus his lack of desire to talk about him past, made it clear that something had happened to trouble him greatly, but the blue-haired boy and the others, even if they did serve the same master now, were still essentially strangers. They weren't going to push his trust, especially since they really didn't know him at all.

"Well, Kuroko," Izuki said once everyone had gotten ready for the day. "Are you coming? If you don't want to, you can stay behind with Furi, Kawahara, and Fukuda. The rest of us are going out, though, including Kagami. I guess you could say it's like a trial run."

The newest Shinki didn't so much as blink before responding, "Yes. I will accompany you. I am interested to see if my abilities remain the same even now that I serve a different master."

"Oh, yeah, Kuroko, what all could you do before, anyway? Since you were just a contact lens, I mean," said Koganei, a curious look creeping up on his face. The blue-haired boy simply looked at him, but did not respond before walking into the next room, where Hyūga was preparing for the day. Koganei sighed. He hadn't really expected Kuroko to answer him, but it was exasperating nonetheless.

In the next room, Hyūga didn't seem to notice as Kuroko entered and walked straight toward him. The god was muttered something about a volleyball team before Kuroko cleared his throat, effectively scaring a rather feminine scream out of him.

Hyūga's newest Shinki didn't look bothered in the slightest as the god quickly regathered himself, completely ignoring what had just happened. "Ah, Kuroko," he greeted. "Are you coming with us for this job, then?"

"Yes," the Shinki replied. "I will be coming with you, if that is all right."

"Of course, of course. I'm looking forward to it. Go talk to Izuki, he'll tell you where we're going."

Kuroko nodded and gave a short bow before departing the room, leaving a sighing Hyūga to himself.

* * *

Not long after, the eight of them set out for their trip. According to Izuki, they were heading to a place called Karasuno High School. There, two students who were vital to the future of the sport of volleyball would be arguing; one of them was apparently walking around with a small Ayakashi on his shoulder. Hyūga needed to kill it before things got too serious, especially given how talented this boy really was. (1)

As it was only his second day as a Shinki, Kagami really had no idea what to expect. He and the other five Shinki had all donned rather casual clothes and had been teleported along with Hyūga to the Miyagi Prefecture, where their destination was located. The teleportation had taken the redhead by surprised, but after observing the neutral reactions of his fellow Shinki, he decided it wasn't anything too out of the ordinary.

He really did have a lot to learn about being a dead spirit.

The trip was louder than Kagami had expected. Izuki had made it sound like it was a life-or-death mission, but everyone else was acting so carefree. Kuroko, of course, remained silent and maintained his usual blank mask.

It didn't take them long to find the high school's gym. Even from a good distance away, Kagami could hear the squeaking of gym shoes against the sleek floor and the shouts of players calling for a toss or giving their teammates a word of encouragement. Once or twice, he even thought he heard a volleyball bouncing off the wall.

The red-headed tiger followed his master and senior Shinki into the gym, filing in in a rather distorted line. After a moment or two, Hyūga pointed towards a decently tall black-haired boy. There, resting on his shoulder, was something that looked almost like a parrot, except that it was purple and had eyeballs on its stomach. Just looking at it made Kagami shudder a bit.

"Alright," Hyūga started, "I'm going to be using Kagami and Kuroko first, just to see what they can do."

Kagami looked over at Hyūga as if the god had lost his mind. "Me? I'm new, though! I don't know what to do!"

"Relax," Izuki said. "We'll be here to guide you through it. It's not hard, really."

Hyūga nodded. "I get the feeling it'll be easy for you, Kagami. Are you guys ready?"

Kagami paused for a moment before giving a rather unconfident "yes." Kuroko simply nodded.

"All right then. Kaki. Kuroki."

Two bright flashes later, a large tiger stood in Kagami's place, and Hyūga was wearing the pair of glasses Kuroko had transformed into.

"Let's see what you two can do."

Kagami walked over to Hyūga, awaiting instructions on how to kill the parrot on the boy's shoulder. "Okay, Kagami, listen. You're obviously an animal type Shinki, so you won't be able to cut the Ayakashi; you'll have to crush it or bite it or something. I've never really fought with a Shinki like you before, so-"

"If you'll excuse me, Hyūga-sama," came Kuroko's voice. "I apologize for interrupting, but this is a field I have experience in."

"Ehh? Don't worry about it, but Kuroko, have you fought alongside a Shinki like Kagami before?"

"Yes," he replied. "One of my former fellow Shinki turned into a panther."

The others became quiet; this was the first they'd learned of Kuroko's past.

"A panther, huh? That's close enough to a tiger, I guess," Hyūga admitted. "Okay, Kuroko, you lead the way."

There was silence for about five seconds before Kuroko spoke.

"Okay, Kagami-kun. This phantom is dangerously close to evolving into something truly dangerous. Let's see… In about ten seconds, the Ayakashi will have its left side exposed. This will last for about two seconds before the boy turns around, preventing you from striking. You will need to leap and grab the Ayakashi with your teeth during this time. Then take it to the corner where it will be easier to destroy without interfering with the volleyball practice. I will give you a signal when it is time for you to retrieve it. Please react quickly."

Kagami didn't notice the flabbergasted looks of the other Shinki. "Got it," he responded. He waited for Kuroko's signal, which came just a few seconds later, before leaping and snatching the Ayakashi off the boy's shoulder.

It struggled in Kagami's mouth, squirming and trying to escape, but the redhead held fast; quickly, he ran over to an unoccupied corner of the gym.

"Shred it," Kuroko said.

Kagami did.

* * *

It was all over in a matter of moments, but it certainly felt longer than that to Kagami. Hyūga had come out of his shocked state to perform an incantation of sorts, using Rend to kill the Ayakashi for good.

There was a tense silence in the seconds that followed its destruction before Hyūga called them back into their human forms. "Kuro. Ka."

Kagami blinked a few times before looking down at his hands. The transformation from human to tiger then back to human was an odd one; it'd take him a while to get used to it.

"How was-" Kagami began to ask how he had done, but stopped when he caught sight of Hyūga's shocked face. He and the rest of the Shinki were all looking at Kuroko with complete and open awe while the blue-haired Shinki obliviously wiped some dust off his pants.

"KUROKO!" Hyūga shouted. "You're able to see the future?!"

The god's newest Shinki finally looked up. "Ah, yes," he replied in monotone. "That was a special ability I gained upon become a Hafuri Vessel. I am able to see what will happen up to a minute in advance, depending on the circumstances."

"A Shinki who can see the future…" Izuki breathed out. "I've never even heard of something like that."

"As far as I know, I am the only one with this ability," Kuroko confirmed.

"That's incredible!" Koganei exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air. "Oi oi, Hyūga, he's gotta come with us from now on. Seeing the future is such an amazing ability! It'll really come in handy! Oh, and Kagami's really strong too! He completely destroyed that phantom on his own on his first try! They're both incredible!"

"I think that's an understatement," Hyūga muttered. "Especially about Kuroko's ability. That's insane." _What kind of god can cause a Shinki to develop that kind of ability..? I'm not even sure I want to know anymore. They must be incredibly powerful, not to mention kind if they had a Hafuri Vessel… But then why do I have that Hafuri Vessel now?_

 _Kuroko, just who the hell are you?_

* * *

 **(1) Haikyuu reference? Hell yeah!**

 **So there's that!**

 **Thanks for reading! Please leave a review on your way out!**


	5. Yellow

**So, it's been, what, 3 months since I updated? Maybe more? I've lost count. Sorry, guys. This has honestly been ready to be posted for weeks now and I just haven't gotten around to posting it. Again, it's not proofread, so expect some mistakes here and there.**

 **Thanks to those who followed, favorited, and reviewed!**

 **SilverWhiteDragon:** Yeah, pretty much. Kuroko's ability was born more out of a necessity to explain something in his past than to portray his Emperor Eye, but it worked out in the end, so I just used it. As far as Akashi and the rest of the Miracles go, you're on the right track, but not quite there yet, hehe. Here's some Kise for you!

 **Kuroshiroryuu:** Yup, Akashi's transition plays a major role in this story. All aboard the angst train.

 **EchizenRyoma:** You'll see!

 **Guest (1):** Yup!

 **Guest (2):** Here's some more!

 **Anime girlxccx:** Well, Hyūga wears glasses anyway, and since Kuroko is usually difficult to notice, I thought I should make him into something an enemy wouldn't really think twice about. Since glasses aren't out of the norm for Hyūga, they wouldn't really imagine that he's anything dangerous. Little do they know he's one of his most powerful weapons.

 **ImpsDream:** Here's some more! Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy!

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Kuroko no Basuke nor Noragami belong to me. They belong to their respective owners.**

 **On with the show!**

* * *

Over the course of the next week, Hyūga and his team of combat Shinki took on many small jobs, mostly to get Kagami used to serving Hyūga alongside the others. On these mini missions, the god demonstrated the transformations of the other four Shinki. Izuki transformed into a simple leather belt, but was easily able to come up with a strategy to defeat any opponent. Kiyoshi turned into a protective jacket to defend his master. Koganei seemed rather proud of the fact that he turned into a baseball bat. Mitobe gave a smile every time Hyūga asked him to turn into a small shield. Tsuchida became a small but deadly poison dart, capable of bringing down opponents in a lethally stealthy fashion.

It had only been seven days, but Kagami had already developed a routine of sorts in his new home. Every morning, he heard his fellow Shinki awakening as early as dawn, but he always slept in a bit later; when Izuki finally forced him out of bed, he would groggily get up and, on some mornings, make breakfast for the entire group. It had been discovered, rather shockingly, that Kagami was actually a talented cook. Hyūga in particular seemed to be rather relieved to not have to scramble to find food for himself and ten Shinki every morning. After breakfast, Kagami would prepare for whatever they were doing that day, which ranged from taking on several missions in a matter of hours or simply lazing around all day and getting to know the other Shinki.

One morning, Koganei suggested returning to Karasuno High School to check up on the volleyball prodigies they had seen a week ago. "Come on, it'll be fun!" he insisted. "I don't know much about volleyball, anyway. Maybe we can learn something!"

It really didn't take much convincing for Hyūga to cave in and agree to take them all back to Karasuno High School that afternoon. This time around, Furihata, Kawahara, and Fukuda tagged along, saying they wanted to see the prodigies they'd heard about from Izuki's story.

It took them a little while to get going, but thanks to Hyūga's teleportation, they arrived at Karasuno in a matter of moments once they finally set off.

Much like last time, they filed into the gymnasium in a rather haphazard line. Much to their pleasant surprise, there was actually a volleyball practice game going on at that very moment. Hyūga hadn't really expected there to be anyone playing that afternoon.

He hadn't expected to meet the God of Perseverance in the gym of Karasuno High School, either.

* * *

The two gods immediately made eye contact and went stiff not a millisecond later. It didn't take long for their instincts to kick in.

"Kuroki! Kaki! Iki! Mokki! Shōki! Mizuki! Doki! Fuki! Kawaki! Fukuki!" (1)

"Kiki! Shōki! Moriki! Hayaki! Nakaki!" (2)

They shouted over each other, loudly, almost as if calling for a battle or a war. The Shinki, who were surprised at being changed into their vessel forms so quickly, were immediately on alert. The two of them stood at a standstill, tense and wielding their weapons. Even Furihata, Kawahara, and Fukuda were in their vessel forms, for their own protection if nothing else.

Hyūga really didn't like this guy.

The other god appeared slightly surprised upon seeing the addition of a tiger to Hyūga's team of Shinki, but kept his overall composure. Hyūga noticed that the other had another weapon, as well; twin dirk daggers (3) were clenched in his hands while his other weapons lay at rest.

"What, you've got a new Shinki, too? It's not normal for you to put all your other ones aside for a new one though, is it, Kasamatsu?" Hyūga said bitterly.

"I guess I'm not the only one who's picked up another weapon," the other said. "This one's special, though. He's a Hafuri Vessel, the best I've ever seen."

Hyūga paused at that, his eyes widening. Kasamatsu, as well, had somehow gotten a Hafuri Vessel, and recently, too. "Oi, oi, when did you get that Vessel?"

The other god hesitated at his opponent's sudden question, but reluctantly answered anyway. "About a week or so ago," he replied. "Why?"

The God of Athletics relaxed, more out of confusion than anything. "Damn," he whispered. "So I wasn't the only one. Just what the hell is going on..?"

Meanwhile, Kuroko's eyes were uncharacteristically wide. Hyūga could feel him tense up and almost struggle against his current form, as though he wanted to change back. "Hyūga-sama, please-"

"What the hell is wrong with you, huh?!" Kasamatsu shouted. "Don't let your guard down just because you have a new toy! I'm stronger than you and you know it!" With a short yell, he leapt towards Hyūga with every intention of slicing him to bits.

"Hyūga-sama, move right two steps."

Before he'd even realized what had happened, Hyūga obeyed Kuroko's command. Kasamatsu went flying straight passed him before skillfully using his momentum to send himself into a flip, landing on the floor a few yards away. His eyes were wide with surprise, and it was easy to tell he was worried about this latest development.

"Turn me back. Please, Hyūga-sama."

Hyūga barely heard Kuroko at first, and the blue-haired Shinki had to ask several times before his request registered in the god's brain. "H-huh? If you're sure, Kuroko…"

"I am sure. Please allow me to turn back, Hyūga-sama."

With Kasamatsu, too, his new Hafuri Vessel was struggling to be reverted back to his human form. "Kasamatsu-sama, this is important! Please!"

The other god consented after a few moments. Both Hafuri Vessels returned to their human forms at the same time. The other god and his followers were confused about the presence of a formerly unnoticed Shinki, while Hyūga and the others took a moment to observe the latest addition to their rival's team.

Kasamatsu's newest Shinki was an impressive looking teenager, perhaps about the age of fifteen or sixteen. He was tall, with yellow hair and eyes and a single piercing in one ear. More than his appearance, though, Hyūga and his Shinki noticed the anguished look in the boy's eyes.

"Tetsucchi… Is that really you?" (4)

"Ryōta…" the bluehead murmured. "Yes, it's me."

Tears leaked out of the blonde's eyes before he ran at full speed towards Hyūga's Hafuri Vessel, tackling him into a hug. They sunk to their knees, the blonde leaning into Kuroko as he cried. "Tetsucchi!" he chanted, over and over again. "Tetsucchi! Tetsucchi! Tetsucchi!"

"Ryōta. Ryōta, it's me. It's me."

"Tetsucchi, I'm so scared! I've never served anyone other than him! It's different! I don't like it, Tetsucchi! I want to go back!" he sniffled.

"Ryōta, calm down," the other said, though he didn't sound mad at all. "You're causing a scene. Even the humans are sensing something." Kuroko was right; some of the volleyball players were now looking in their general direction, looks of confusion apparent on their faces. Kuroko ran his pale hand through other's blonde hair, caressing him in an almost parental way. "We should go outside," he suggested, oblivious to the stares and wide eyes from both Hyūga and Kasamatsu, as well as their Shinki.

The blonde nodded before releasing the shorter boy from his bear hug and trying to wipe away his tears. There was now an affectionate, nostalgic smile on his face, a sharp contrast from the terrible expression he'd worn just moments ago. The two of them turned to leave the gym, but Hyūga and Kasamatsu had other ideas.

"Oi, Kuroko, what's the deal?! You know this guy?"

"Kise, what the hell are you doing? This isn't like you!"

The blonde suddenly appeared confused, while Kuroko kept his ever-blank mask tightly in place.

"Kuro...ko…?" He turned toward the blue-haired Shinki before a look of realization dawned upon him. "Ah, that's your new name! Kuroko… I guess I should call you Kurokocchi now, huh?" he said sadly.

"Yes, Kise-kun, I suppose you should," Kuroko agreed.

"'Kise-kun', huh," the blonde muttered. "I guess we really are different people under different masters."

"Yes." Kuroko was quieter than normal. "I guess we really are."

* * *

 **(1) Kuroko, Kagami, Izuki, Kiyoshi, Koganei, Mitobe, Tsuchida, Furihata, Kawahara, and Fukuda, in that order. Again, I don't know if the translations are accurate, because in some cases (like Kiyoshi's) it comes up as something different than just the first part of the name and 'ki' in Google Translate. Oh well.**

 **(2) Kise, Kobori, Moriyama, Hayakawa, and Nakamura, respectively. Again with the weird name things from Google Translate; accuracy is not guaranteed. Also, many characters throughout the story, like Koganei and Kobori, will have the same vessel names, since they have the same symbols in their names. Sorry.**

 **(3) Just a Scottish type of dagger. They're longer than normal, I think. Kise's true ability will be displayed later on, but this is his usual form.**

 **(4) Tetsucchi sounds more natural than Tetsuyacchi to me. Think of it as a double nickname, I guess. It's not like he'll be calling him by that name anymore, anyways.**

 **There it is, I guess...? This was pretty difficult to write, as well as rushed and not proofread, so it's probably not as good as it could be. Oh well.**

 **Thanks for reading! Please leave a review on your way out!**


	6. Legend

**I'm back! I was supposed to be in school today but it got canceled due to flash floods, so I finally had some time to get this done. This was quickly proofread so if there are any lingering mistakes I apologize.**

 **Thanks to those who followed, favorited, and reviewed!**

 **Keelan1210:** Yeah, he pretty much is. And yes, Momoi will be a Shinki as well!

 **Zanas-kun:** Looking back on it, I probably should've made Kagami more vocal about this whole thing, but I got caught up in writing Kise so I didn't really include him... Oops. He's more prominent in a chunk of this chapter, so I hope that makes up for it. I'll try and write him more in character in the future, thanks!

 **mayuyu:** Maybe not just eggs but pretty much cheap stuff, yeah. Akashi will definitely be playing an important part in this story... *cough*

 **DISCLAIMER: Neither Kuroko no Basuke nor Noragami belong to me. They belong to their respective owners.**

 **On with the show!**

* * *

Hyūga and Kasamatsu agreed to lay down their weapons long enough to talk about what had happened. Both of them were curious about the pasts of their newly acquired Shinki, to say the least. They called back their weapons so that all of them adopted their human forms once more.

It was decided that they should at least leave the gym before carrying out a conversation; apparently, an important practice match happening and they had almost interrupted it. It involved the future of those volleyball prodigies Hyūga and the others had sought out the other day, who were apparently very tenacious about their victory today, which is why Kasamatsu had shown up in the first place.

It took about half a second for Kuroko and Kise to be completely drowned with questions after they'd all stepped outside. It was almost dizzying with all the shouting and yelling. Kise looked overwhelmed, but Kuroko just retained his blank expression as though nothing was happening.

"Oi, oi, what the hell's going on, anyway?"

"Kuroko, you know this guy?"

"Kise, you'd better spill what's going on, or we're going to have problems, newbie."

"Come on, guys, don't you think you're harassing them just a little too much?"

"I wonder what their deal is."

"WOULD YOU ALL SHUT THE HELL UP?!" Hyūga and Kasamatsu yelled at the same time. Not two seconds later, they were growling at each other's throats.

"Please calm down, Hyūga-sama," Kuroko muttered offhandedly. Kise simply sweatdropped.

Upon realizing that they were being addressed, the two gods ceased arguing and stared at the blue-haired boy.

"Ehh?! Kuroko, where the hell did you come from?!"

"You! Who the hell are you, anyway? And why do you keep popping out of nowhere, huh?!"

"I apologize," the Shinki said with a short bow. "I have an unusually low presence."

Kise started laughing until Kasamatsu karate-chopped his head, effectively shutting him up. "AND YOU! Why the hell are you laughing and being all friendly?! You know this guy?"

"Ehhh? Of course I know Kurokocchi! He and I used to serve the same god not too long ago, you know."

"The same… Wait, who was it?"

A simultaneous "not telling!" and "I'm sorry, but I cannot say" met everyone's ears.

Hyūga's eye twitched. _They're both being so secretive… What the hell's up with that, huh?_

"Both of you… Wait a minute, both of you worked under the same god, right? Aren't you both Hafuri Vessels?"

There was a slight paused before the teal-haired Shinki answered. "Yes." Kise nodded enthusiastically at his side.

"...Were you Hafuri Vessels before you met that master, or..?"

"Nope!" Kise said, popping the 'p.' "He was the first god I'd ever served, you know. It's so weird, now, having a different name… I keep forgetting to respond, and then Kasamatsu-sama gets mad at me..!" Kise continued rambling on about his life and how much it had changed. Everyone around him sweatdropped, including Kuroko.

"To answer your question, no," the short Shinki said after a few moments. "Both of us transformed into Hafuri Vessels for the same master."

"Two Hafuri Vessels, huh? That must've been one hell of a god, then. I didn't even know it was possible to have two Shinki change for one god, they're so rare…"

"Only two?" Kise suddenly quit his rant and was blinking in a sudden surprise. "Ne ne, Kurokocchi, what all have you said?"

"Nothing," the other responded. "What about you?"

"Ahhh, the same goes for me, Kurokocchi! Even I'm not that helpless, you know," he added, muttering.

"Yes, Kise-kun." Kuroko stated bluntly. His blank eyes unblinkingly stared at Kise until the blonde Shinki became completely unnerved.

"C-c-come on, Kurokocchi, you know I hate it when you do that…"

The tealhead blinked for a moment. Hyūga could've sworn he was smiling, if only a little bit, before his face fell back into its usual mask.

"Oi, Kise, and… er, Kuroko-san, is there anything you're able to tell us about your past? Anything at all?" Kasamatsu questioned. "You can't just have a surprise reunion between two Hafuri Vessels and expect us to not be curious."

"I apologize, Kasamatsu-sama," Kuroko bowed, "but we cannot disclose any information about our former master."

"So that's how it is, eh?" the black-haired god said lazily. "I guess I understand, though. From what little I know, they seem like a pretty interesting deity. I wouldn't want people spreading info on me if I were like that, either, honestly."

Hyūga, on the other hand, was a little more suspicious, though of course he didn't voice his thoughts. _Two Hafuri Vessels for one master… Who the hell would they have done that for? I've never even heard of a god having more than one Hafuri Vessel… Well, except for that one, but that's just a legend…_

"'Kise,' huh," Hyūga muttered as he watched the two reunited friends converse. Kuroko looked more animated than Hyūga had ever seen him, actually smiling slightly and reacting to the blonde's words.

"I guess this situation just got a bit more interesting."

* * *

Somehow, the Hafuri Vessels' interrogation turned into an hour-long chat between the two sides. As it turned out, Hyūga and Kasamatsu didn't have a long, bloody history as the newer Shinki had thought. Rather, their occupations were similar, so they saw each other quite often at things like sports events. These chance meetings had quickly evolved into an unofficial rivalry.

The two gods actually got along decently well when they weren't fighting. While they weren't the best of friends, they were well-behaved and civilized. They were off having a conversation of their own while their Shinki got to know each other. The two Guideposts, specifically, were swapping stories and comparing gods.

"Hey… What's a Hafuri Vessel?" Kagami asked suddenly. He'd been standing by, listening to the others' conversations and trying to learn from them, but he hadn't understood much. "I mean, I get that they're amazing and all, but what exactly are they..?"

"Ah, that's right! You're new, aren't you, Kagami-san?" asked Moriyama, Kasamatsu's Guidepost. "A Hafuri Vessel… Well, to put it simply, they're like upgraded Shinki. They have abilities that go far beyond those of normal vessels."

"Every Shinki starts out the same," Izuki joined in. "However, once in a blue moon, there will be a Shinki who evolves to a further form… These are the Hafuri Vessels. To become a Hafuri Vessel, a Shinki must put their master's life ahead of their own, and be willing to sacrifice themselves to protect their god. Even then, not every Shinki can become a Hafuri Vessel."

"Yes, they're extremely rare," Moriyama continued. "Kise was the first one I ever met, and that was only recently, too. I was surprised enough when he showed up, and now I'm finding out that Hyūga-san also has acquired a Hafuri Vessel at about the same time. Kuroko-san, was it?"

Izuki nodded in confirmation. "Isn't it odd? It's almost like that legend," he chuckled.

Moriyama smiled in agreement. "It is, isn't it?"

"What legend?" Kagami asked, confused.

"Ahh, well, there's a story regarding the danger of possessing a Hafuri Vessel," Moriyama explained. "Even though it's only about a hundred years old, there isn't a god or Shinki that hasn't heard it. Personally, I think someone made it up because they were upset their Shinki wouldn't evolve for them, but I've met many people who believe it to be true."

"Yeah, I'm kind of surprised by the number of people who genuinely buy that stuff," Izuki commented. "It's full of nonsense, really."

"What kind of nonsense?"

"Well, normally, it's very, very rare for a Shinki to evolve. You've got to be a fantastic god, really, to have someone that dedicated to you. However, in this story… Supposedly, six Shinki became Hafuri Vessels for the same god. All at once, too."

"...Is that even possible?"

"That's exactly what I said when I first heard to story," Moriyama agreed, "but some people believe in it. It doesn't stop there, either. There are many different versions of the end of the story, but the most common one… They say that having six Hafuri Vessels was so taxing on this god that he essentially broke down. His newly blessed vessels, seeing that he was now weak from trying to control them, turned on him and slit his throat while he was sleeping."

Kagami could only stare, wide-eyed.

"That kind of defeats the purpose, doesn't it?" Izuki yawned. "If you're going to have a Hafuri Vessel, wouldn't they be incredibly loyal?"

Moriyama shrugged. "Beats me. It's just a legend, though. Hafuri Vessels are rare enough, anyways. I didn't think it was possible for two Shinki to evolve for the same master before today."

"Before today?" Kagami echoed.

"Yeah. Kuroko-san and Kise said they were both from the same master, even though they wouldn't tell us who, right? I'm really surprised, actually. I don't think something like that's ever happened before."

"What's up with that, I wonder..?

"What's up with what?"

"Don't you feel like Kuroko and Kise are hiding something?" Kagami questioned. "I mean, they obviously don't want to tell us anything about their pasts. They've gotta have a good reason why, right? I just wonder what. it is"

Izuki gave a sharp chuckle. "It's not unusual for a Shinki to not want to discuss their life with their previous masters," he said. "It's like a privacy thing, you know? Usually if they're looking for another master it means something happened with their old one, probably something they'd rather not openly talk about. I'm not at all surprised they're not saying anything."

"It does feel like they're being a little extreme about it, though, doesn't it?" Moriyama admitted, looking thoughtful. "Multiple Hafuri Vessels from the same master. Just like in the legend."

"Hey hey, come on now. There are only two of them. It's definitely surprising, but it's much more believable than six. Besides, like you said, it's just a legend, right?"

Kasamatsu's Guidepost only hummed in affirmation.

"That legend…" Kagami's mind was whirling. "U-um, who's the god in that story?"

"The god? I doubt he even exists. He doesn't have a specified name; none of them do. Although, if I recall correctly, there was a name for the group of Hafuri Vessels the god commanded before they betrayed him…"

"The Vessels? What were they called?"

"Hmm… I don't remember exactly, but I think…" He paused a moment, trying to collect his thoughts. A sudden epiphany made his eyes light up. "Ah, that's right!

They were called the Generation of Miracles."

* * *

 **So that's that! The pieces of Kuroko's past are starting to come together, but they're pretty much still all over the place... Don't forget, rumors and stories aren't necessarily true!**

 **Thanks for reading! Please leave a review on your way out!**


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